Italian oil and gas supermajor, Eni, and American supermajor, Chevron, have made a significant gas discovery at the Nargis-1 exploration well, situated in the Nargis Offshore Area Concession in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea, offshore Egypt.
Announced on 15 January, the discovery encountered roughly 200 net feet of gas-bearing sandstones, with the Nargis-1 well having been drilled in 1,014 feet of water by the Stena Forth drillship within the greater Nargis Offshore Area Concession that spans approximately 1,800km2.
“Chevron is encouraged and excited by the success of this first exploration well which encountered high-quality reservoirs,” stated Clay Neff, President of International Exploration and Production for Chevron.
Meanwhile, confirming the validity of the concession area, Eni has indicated that it will continue to develop Egypt’s offshore basins, having been recently awarded the North Rafah, North El Fayrouz, Northeast El Arish, Tiba, and Bellatrix-Seti East exploration blocks, while using its existing facilities to expediate further development of the Nargis-1 discovery.
Drilling of the Nargis-1 exploration well commenced in October 2022, with a report from December indicating the presence of as much as 3.5 trillion cubic feet of natural gas. The Nargis Offshore Area Concession is operated by Chevron, which holds a 45% interest, while Eni also holds a 45% interest, with the remaining 10% held by Egyptian upstream operations company, Tharwa Petroleum Company.
